1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates generally to the field of content storage. More specifically, the present invention is related to creating varying levels of access for specialized data content.
2. Discussion of Prior Art
With the advent of ubiquitous, broadband networks, it has become increasingly popular to purchase digital content (such as music, video, software, etc.) and to receive the content using downloadable computer files or online data streams rather than using physical media (such as CDs or VHS tapes). As this type of interaction becomes more common, new types of infrastructure will need to be developed to help manage this process, to make it easier to use and to make it more cost effective.
FIG. 1 illustrates a prior art content delivery system wherein a user is able to use a computer-based device (e.g., a personal computer (PC) 110, laptop 112, pen-based computer 113, wireless telephone 114, personal digital assistant (PDA) 116, pager 118, etc.) to establish a communication link with one or more content providers 102, 104, and 106 over a network 108 (e.g., local area network (LAN), wide area network (WAN), Internet, etc.). In this scenario, users are able to request and download various types of digital content (over network 108) from the content providers 102, 104, and 106 onto their computer-based device.
A popular type of digital content that is requested for download is multimedia digital content such as audio (e.g., MP3's) and video content (e.g., MPEG4). Digital content providers offer various online services wherein users are able to request and download multimedia content over a network such as the Internet. These types of services are convenient to users who are interested in downloading digital content onto their computer-based devices (as long as their computer-based device is capable of communicating with the content provider over a network such as the Internet).
In the instance that users are not at their home or office and are interested in purchasing digital content, but do not have access to their Internet connection, they are limited to purchasing physical media at various physical locations, such as a music store. At the music store, they are provided with a choice of purchasing the physical media with the multimedia content (e.g., a music CD). When users are interested in purchasing digital content related to a product of interest (as opposed to purchasing the physical media itself), they must go to a physical location such as their home or office that has access to the Internet to perform a financial transaction before downloading the digital content onto their computer-based device.
Some music stores have headsets to preview music. These previews, however, are very limited in duration, and multimedia content associated with such previews are not presented in their entirety. Thus, in the example of a music store, if a user is interested in a particular album, he/she can press a button corresponding to the album and be able to preview segments of certain songs in the album.
A problem faced by vendors of digital content (e.g., multimedia content), is that currently each must independently develop mechanisms for content delivery and Digital Rights Management (DRM). This is both costly to provide and is difficult for consumers to use as they must deal with a variety of different interfaces and access methods in order to obtain their goods.
In addition, current methods tend to constrain to way in which online media is purchased. Traditionally, for example, digital goods that are purchasable via online transactions require a network connection in order to access these goods. From an end user's perspective, however, it would be more convenient and simpler if the method by which people purchase digital goods is independent of the good's delivery mechanism.
Similarly, the type of device used to purchase digital goods should be independent of the device used to access these goods. It should be possible, for example, to use a wireless web device to purchase a high-resolution video regardless of whether the device has sufficient bandwidth to view the video or enough storage capacity to save it locally. The consumer may wish to purchase the video for later viewing on another device with a higher speed connection or may simply want to automatically download the content to another device such as a home server.
The following references provide a general description of digital content providers that allow digital content to be downloaded.
The U.S. patent to Schulhof et al. (U.S. Pat. No. 5,572,442), assigned to Information Highway Media Corporation, provides a system for distributing subscription and on-demand audio programming. Disclosed is a system for downloading digital audio data onto a portable audio storage medium and listening to it at a desired time. The portable audio storage medium is capable of high-speed data transfer that can be downloaded from such systems as a television cable system, satellite, or fiber optic telephone link.
The published U.S. patent application to Tsukamoto (Ser. No. 2001/0013120A1), assigned to NEC Corporation, provides for a digital content rental system. Disclosed is a process that consists of a customer visiting the store with a portable storage unit, such as a magnetic disk. The user may then choose from a plurality of digital content and download the desired content onto his/her storage medium.
The published U.S. patent application to Ekkel (Ser. No. 2001/0037360A1), assigned to Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V., provides for data service at a transit terminal. Disclosed is a system that provides information content to a user at a repository. While a consumer is traveling, a data service offers information availability that can be downloaded by the user to a storage device to be viewed offline. Using a mobile storage medium such as a memory card or a magnetic disk, the individual may use the highly customizable service to download electronic information content from a host repository or server.
The published U.S. patent application to Sibley (Ser. No. 2001/0039662A1), assigned to Hughes Electronics Corporation, provides for a digital over-the-air communication system for use with a digital terrestrial broadcasting system. Disclosed is a system for distributing electrical content using digital over-the-air communication. The process consists of a network operation center uplinking electronic content packages to a satellite, a broadcast center receiving the electronic content from the satellite, and a user device receiving the digital content via a digital channel generated by the broadcast center.
The published U.S. patent application to Ramachandran et al. (Ser. No. 2001/0044747A1), assigned to Diebold, Incorporated, provides for a system and method for dispensing digital information from an automated transaction machine. Disclosed is a service that offers digital content information to a user through an automated transaction machine.
Whatever the precise merits, features, and advantages of the above-cited references, none of them achieve or fulfill the benefits of the present invention.